August 15, 2017

Master Ha's Amazing Beef Bone Broth

It's amazing--beef bone broth that's as white as milk. But there's no milk in it, no cream, no creamer, nothing but pure beef essence.

The only place to get it is Master Ha Korean Restaurant in Koreatown. There, owner/chef Jason Ha (above) cooks the broth down for 50 hours, transferring it from one giant pot to another until the final pot holds the richest reduction.

First, beef bones are soaked, then boiled and rinsed twice to make sure they are perfectly clean. Then they go into the first pot to boil with water until reduced to a third, which takes 10 to 12 hours. In the next pot, the broth is again reduced to a third. And so on.

The final concentrated broth (above) goes into the famous Korean ox bone soup seolleongtang (at the top). The soup is brought to the table unseasoned so that customers can taste the perfection of the broth. They're then free to add salt and pepper.

A spicy version of seolleongtang appeals to young customers and Latinos, Ha said.

The magic broth also goes into the brisket soup suyuk (above), served steaming hot. To eat this, you wrap a sesame leaf around a slice of meat, adding veggies from the soup.

Then you dip the bundle into a sweet jalapeño, soy sauce and mustard mixture (above).

Master Ha opened at the end of March. The menu is small, just nine dishes. Another soup is galbitang, beef short rib soup with egg strands on top and clear noodles underneath (above).

Soups are the mainstay, but Master Ha's marinated crab combo is also popular. The raw crab (above) has a quail egg on top and rice at the bottom.

Seasoned crab innards from the shell (above) can be stirred in to intensify the flavor.

The other seafood option is marinated raw shrimp and abalone (above).

Kimchi, marinated radish and thick green onions come with the dishes (above). Insulated containers on the table hold corn/barley tea. When the meal is over, the kitchen sends out hazelnut-flavored coffee as a palate cleanser.

Ha already plans to open another restaurant. He has plenty of experience, having cooked in a restaurant his father owned and also for his church. For the past seven years Ha has prepared the food served after services, and this is where he perfected his broth. He still does this, and that's why Master Ha is closed on Sundays.

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Master Ha's Amazing Beef Bone Broth

It's amazing--beef bone broth that's as white as milk. But there's no milk in it, no cream, no creamer, nothing but pure beef essence.

The only place to get it is Master Ha Korean Restaurant in Koreatown. There, owner/chef Jason Ha (above) cooks the broth down for 50 hours, transferring it from one giant pot to another until the final pot holds the richest reduction.

First, beef bones are soaked, then boiled and rinsed twice to make sure they are perfectly clean. Then they go into the first pot to boil with water until reduced to a third, which takes 10 to 12 hours. In the next pot, the broth is again reduced to a third. And so on.

The final concentrated broth (above) goes into the famous Korean ox bone soup seolleongtang (at the top). The soup is brought to the table unseasoned so that customers can taste the perfection of the broth. They're then free to add salt and pepper.

A spicy version of seolleongtang appeals to young customers and Latinos, Ha said.

The magic broth also goes into the brisket soup suyuk (above), served steaming hot. To eat this, you wrap a sesame leaf around a slice of meat, adding veggies from the soup.

Then you dip the bundle into a sweet jalapeño, soy sauce and mustard mixture (above).

Master Ha opened at the end of March. The menu is small, just nine dishes. Another soup is galbitang, beef short rib soup with egg strands on top and clear noodles underneath (above).

Soups are the mainstay, but Master Ha's marinated crab combo is also popular. The raw crab (above) has a quail egg on top and rice at the bottom.

Seasoned crab innards from the shell (above) can be stirred in to intensify the flavor.

The other seafood option is marinated raw shrimp and abalone (above).

Kimchi, marinated radish and thick green onions come with the dishes (above). Insulated containers on the table hold corn/barley tea. When the meal is over, the kitchen sends out hazelnut-flavored coffee as a palate cleanser.

Ha already plans to open another restaurant. He has plenty of experience, having cooked in a restaurant his father owned and also for his church. For the past seven years Ha has prepared the food served after services, and this is where he perfected his broth. He still does this, and that's why Master Ha is closed on Sundays.